📖 A Thought from My Personal Meditation (Exodus 20:16–21)
Today, while continuing to meditate on Exodus chapter 20, I came to the remaining commandments and the events that followed the giving of the Ten Commandments.
The next commandment says:
“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”
Exodus 20:16
This commandment reminds us of the importance of speaking the truth.
If we do not know something, we should not pretend that we know it.
We should not spread false information about others, especially with the intention of hurting them or damaging their reputation.
At the same time, we are also called to speak the truth in love.
Our words should not be used to destroy people. We should be truthful, but we should also speak with love, wisdom, and grace.
The next commandment says:
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.”
Exodus 20:17
Covetousness is an unhealthy and ungodly desire to possess what belongs to someone else.
Because of our fallen human nature, we may often look at what others have and desire to possess it.
We may look at our friends, neighbours, or fellow believers and become dissatisfied with what God has given us.
But God calls us to be content.
When someone else receives something good, we should not allow jealousy or covetousness to fill our hearts.
Instead, we can thank God for the blessings He has given them.
Lord, help us to be content with what You have given us. Take away covetousness from our hearts and help us to praise You instead of complaining about what we do not have.
After God gave the commandments, the Israelites witnessed thunderings, lightning, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking.
They were afraid and asked Moses to speak to God on their behalf.
But Moses told them:
“Do not fear, for God has come to test you, and that His fear may be before you, so that you may not sin.”
Exodus 20:20
This verse teaches us something important about the fear of the Lord.
The fear of the Lord does not mean that we should live in terror of God.
It means that we recognize who God is and live with reverence before Him.
It means that we choose not to do what is wrong because we know that God sees us.
Do we truly have the fear of the Lord in our lives?
Do we avoid sin because we love God and desire to please Him?
Finally, God instructed Moses to build an altar.
In the New Testament, we do not need a physical altar in the same way as the Israelites did.
But we do need a spiritual altar.
Romans 12:1 reminds us to present our bodies as a living sacrifice to God.
We need a place of prayer and surrender in our lives.
A man of God whom I respect always says:
“Shall we build an altar?”
Through this, he encourages us to come into the presence of God in prayer.
God said:
“In every place where I record My name I will come to you, and I will bless you.”
Exodus 20:24
So let us ask ourselves:
- Do I have an altar in my life?
- Do I regularly come into the presence of God in prayer?
- Do I surrender myself completely into His hands?
God’s Word is a mirror that helps us examine our hearts.
May the Lord help us to speak the truth in love, to be content with what He has given us, to live in the fear of the Lord, and to maintain a life of prayer and surrender before Him.
May we learn to build an altar wherever we go—not necessarily a physical altar, but a life that continually comes before God in prayer, worship, and surrender.
Have a blessed day!
God bless you all.
— Hineni Life | hinenilife.com/